Task 1 - Line drawings

To start off this assignment I was tasked with multiple drawing exercises. The first being to use mark marking techniques. Below is three different types of marks using two different materials. The first is lead markings using a pencil.

As you can see I did simple lines ranging from tall to small and thick to thin, this is to get different effects and see how they will help me with future drawings. One use of line drawing is for hairs on some of the insects.

The second mark making was cross hatching, as you can see I repeated the same techniques as previously where I made thin and thick lines in some areas and smaller yet bigger lines in others. I gathered different types of techniques from this method such as making rigid or scruffy lines for certain shadings or textures on an insect.

The final mark making technique was stipling, again I tried to copy the previous techniques by making smaller and bigger dots and grouping some together while spreading other ones further apart. This technique could be used for creating patterns on insects, since a lot of insects have interesting designs on their bodies. Usually the designs are close to being spotty so I feel like stipling could help to make those designs.

I copied the exact same techniques again but this time using ink from a fine liner pen. Again all three technique consisted of using the techniques in different ways such as spreading them out and making the marks bigger or smaller.

The difference between the pen and pencil were the sharpness and rough looking ways of the marks, the pencil looks very scruffy and less careful so makes the shading and pattern making looked blurred and less cared for whereas the pen marks looked more refined and allowed for cleaner makes to be made on the page. 

The next tasks were to draw the bugs but with different challenges, this first bug was to be drawn using just a pen in any way I wanted. Since I don't usually draw I encountered some problems that I quickly fixed as the drawings went on. I drew the bug to big for the age and so its body proportions are out of place and the design is very weak. However, I did get very smooth lines, however, the problem with pen is that it cannot be rubbed out so once drawn it is on the page forever.

This is another pen drawing but this time I had to add shading to it. Pen allows for very wavy type lines and is very good for quick shading. Also the amount of hardness with pressing down on the pen will determine how bold the lone is.

The next one was just a normal drawing of a grasshopper with pencil, like I did with the pen before but with no shading.

Here is a drawing of a wasp done using pencil, the only needed challenge of the wasp was to shade it and add details that match as close to the reference image as possible.

For this task I had to draw a bug using pencil without removing it from the piece of paper, this was a hard task due to how the bug was shaped but I believe I did a good job.

For this task I had to use my non drawing hand to create the bug whilst keeping my hand on the page, I also decided to add in a bit of shading at the end to give the bug better detail.

For this task I had to use stick and ink to create the bug, stick and ink is a more precise version of a pens lines due to the point of the tooth pick. The lines also look more bold and due to the size of the toothpick it allows for there to be easier control over the lines. The problem with stick and ink though is that the ink runs away very quickly so you have to keep dipping the pick into the ink so to not let the lines get to weak. It can also cause problems such as blotching if too much ink is present on the pick, an example of that happening is at the bottom of the page where there is a huge blob of ink on the cockroach that shouldn't be there.

This drawing had to be done using coloured pencils to try and match up to the reference image as much as possible.

This drawing had to be done using a coloured felt tip pen, drawing as close to the reference image as possible.

Task 2 - Design ideas

For this task I had to use the knowledge of the previous drawing exercises to draw three designs of insects that I would be able to create sculptures from. The images could be combined of whatever small insects I wanted adding as much or little detail as needed.

This first drawing was of an ant, wasp and preying mantis hybrid. I liked the design of it and envisioned what materials I could use to make the different areas out of. However, due to time constraints and modelling skills I chose to ignore this design for my final one.

This drawing was of a butterfly, dragonfly and mosquito hybrid. Again while it was a good design I chose to not continue with this further due to the intricate design of said beast and what materials I'd use to make each separate body part with.

This design was of a preying mantis, tarantula, scorpion hybrid. This was the design I chose to base my sculpture off due to the simple designs of each insect and the materials I could use would be easy to mould and work for each part.

Task 3 - 3D Material Samples

In this task I had to experiment with different materials to see what could work for my final bug design. 

Wire

The first material is wire, I made three objects using it. A cube, a cylinder and a sphere. While It was a very malleable material it was very hard to control and caused me huge amounts of trouble when trying to create said objects. I made the objects using twi different wires, a thick black one and a thing gold one, the thick black one would be the base of the shape while the gold one was used to wrap around the black pieces and hold them together.

Below is a set of images that show the objects I made. I found the cylinder took up a lot of my time to make along with a lot of resources so I rushed my cube and sphere using less resources along with them.

In this image below I used wire along with other materials to create a 2D materialistic version of one of my previous drawings. This had the use of wire, string, cotton, glue, paper and a coloured powdery material. I created the body of the bug using thick black wire, once developed I got string and wool and made the limbs and antenna from both as these materials were easier to manipulate. To add colour I sprinkled some red and brown powder over the creation.

Mod rock

Here is a sample of me using mod rock to get used to the material. Instead of using a sculpture of a bug I used simple shapes of corrugated card.

Gum paper

The same technique was done for the gum paper, I skipped making a sculpture of a bug and instead tested how the material works, I wrapped together pieces of corrugated card and came out with this basic triangle shape.

Task 4 - Properties of matrerials

Wire

Wire is a very odd material to use and was my most disliked one that I used. The things I noticed with wire is that it is a very malleable material which means it can be bended very easily into a multitude of different shapes. It can also become quite sturdy in the fact of holing up a shape and not crumbling. It can be noted that using wire is like drawing in 3D due to the linear, curves and bends you get can mimic that of 2D drawing.

The limitations of using wire though is that since it is too malleable the shapes of objects and sculptures can become disfigured dues to physical pressure or mistakes. An example of this is the sphere I created, to start off I made three perfectly sized circles but when I tried putting them together I bent them out of place a little and made them look less circle like and more oval. Another limitation is depending on how thick the piece of wire is will determine the detail and how malleable it is to a degree. This means that you will need to buy different sizes just to make a detailed sculpture. This also is a limitation in itself since wire can be very expensive and so needing different sizes of it will cost the person a lot. The wire also cannot be coloured in and so different coloured wire will need to be bought, while this adds a nice aesthetic to the final sculpture it will also cost the sculptor even more.

ModRoc

ModRoc was my favourite material to use as I found it the most easiest to mould and make strong sculptures from. It is a very strong material and so can be used to hold up an object when using it for the legs or foundation. It is very easy to apply to anything and so can be wrapped around any armature made allowing it to sculpt into unique shapes and making the shape even sturdier. To actually use ModRoc was easy as well since all I had to do was dip it into a cup of water and then apply it to a surface and rub. However, this meant I had to wait for the material to dry which wasted a little bit of time.

The limitations of ModRoc are that it can't have a material applied over it except for another layer of ModRoc making it less useful for certain situations. An example would be adding paper mache over ModRoc, this material would not stick to the ModRoc due to the glue. It can also be very messy making sculptures and your work space look less professional then it could. There are also a lot of health and safety issues with ModRoc such as if the sculptor breathes in too much of the particles produced it can cause lung cancer known as silicosis and can be worse for eczema do to its drying out properties. Once ModRoc dries it cannot be moulded again and can be easily broken, if it breaks then more ModRock will needed to be added over it but that can disfigure the sculpture.

Paper Mache

Paper mache was an okay material for me to use, it was easy but very time consuming when trying to make some of the shapes I needed. Like ModRoc it needs to be wet but instead of just needing water and applying it to a surface you need to use glue mixed with water that been spread all over the surface of the paper. This would have to have been done over and over again with pieces of paper until the shape you want has formed. You also have to work quick with the glue and water which can be both good and bad since it makes you work fast but working fast can lead to slip ups. The strength of the paper mache can depend on the amount of layers you give it and the strength of the glue since its mixed with water, it can dilute the strength of the glue. The paper needs an amateur to actually work properly and look correct for a sculptor. The expense of paper is very cheap though and it is a very easy to get source or material since most shops sell them. It can also be used in a recyclable fashion by using it for sculptors but should be handled with care since it is easily ripped and not very durable to liquid.

Gummed paper

Gummed paper is also another water based material so its easy to stick onto certain surfaces but agin the sculptor has to wait for it to dry. The surface of the gum paper can be very smooth though and so allows for more refined looking sculptures. It is also very strong with its sticking abilities making it need less layers to hold two separate objects together. It is also very versatile allowing for it to have multiple uses in different types of ways. The paper is very durable however, so too much water can cause it to disintegrate.

Corrugated card

Corrugated card is a strong material to use, it can hold up an object as the material is very sturdy, this however means that it is hard to bend and is not very malleable. The best part about corrugated card is that it is a good armature to wrap other materials over. However, for water based materials if there is too much water used it will cause the card to disintegrate and make the sculpting go awry. It is also an easy to come across material since a lot of daily life objects use it for packaging and so can be recycled for sculpting use.

Combination

When it came to combing the materials I found that some materials were better combined with other. In my opinion ModRoc was a great material to combine separate object or encase a material in ready to combine with another due to its strong combining qualities. The only bad thing is its irreversible and can look quite tacky if not moulded equally.

Corrugated card is the best to use for a thick base and can be combined with any of the other materials (as long as they aren't wet too much) but can fall down if being combined with wire since they can't really help each other out in ways.

Wire is also a good armature but for smaller designs and goes very well with paper mache for making wings.

Gummed paper is good for a starting foundation when sticking two objects or surfaces together such as sticking two sides of a rolled up piece of corrugated card. However, if used to make a thick layer it would take a long time so its many good for single layer use. It cannot be stuck onto ModRoc but is good to stick ModRoc onto shapes with gummed paper in use.

Paper Mache is a good material to use on any of the above except for ModRock (as the sticking properties don't work when being placed onto it). It feels very similar to gummed paper so its a little bit useless in my opinion to mix those together but is very good for placing over wire or corrugated card.

Task 5 - Final bug

This is my final sculpture, I chose to sculpt the design I made on task two of a preying mantis, tarantula, scorpion. Below are screenshots of said sculpture.

To begin the project I got the 3D sphere I created out of wire and wrapped paper mache around it using multiple layers until I got a big enough back body size and squishing it to make the top and bottom more flat. I did the same again but with less layers for the second part of the body. Then I wrapped both parts in ModRoc.

After that I got some straws and wire and placed the wire inside of the straws, I then started to bend them into the same shape that a tarantulas legs would go eventually encasing them in ModRoc. I used straws since they are much thicks than wire, but the wire allowed the straws to stay in the same shape with unfolding.

Next I created the head and neck using corrugated card. I firstly started with the neck, cutting off a piece and rolling it up then using gummed paper to stick the two sides together. Then I encased that in ModRoc. For the head I cut out two connected pieces of equilateral triangles and folded the edges over so I had two equal bases mirroring each other with a flat rectangular piece connecting them that resembled a mantis mouth. I then encased that in ModRoc and stuck the two pieces together.

The eyes and antenna were next connected to the head. Firstly, I rolled up the eyes using newspaper and paper mache adding a few layers on both. Encasing it in ModRoc and connected them to the head, I then got one wire piece and bent it into an antenna looking state using more ModRoc connecting it to the head.

Finally, I created the scorpion arms by rolling up 4 paper mache balls each one being a size bigger than the other to show it growing. The first three balls were connected using ModRoc which was pressed in between each ball to resemble that of a scorpion arm. The final ball had more ModRoc placed on the end and pinch to resemble a point that looks like one on a scorpion, it was connected to the final ball and then connected to the mantis body. The same method was done for the other arms.

This is the final picture of what my sculpture looks like.

Task 6 - Evaluation

Evaluation of materials

After using all the materials I found which were my most liked and hated, I really liked using ModRoc, it was simple to use, helped to hold my objects together, and could be moulded easily when wet. My most hated material to use was the wire material, I felt like I was soft handed to use it and so would disfigure a lot of smooth looking objects such as the sphere, I also found it difficult to use wire to connect objects together due to having to hold the objects and wrap the wire and how my hands shaked sometimes.

As for the other materials I had no problem using but didn't really feel like I needed to use them for my final sculpture that much compared to the ModRoc material so while they weren't bad to use or hard they were very un-impactful for me and my work.

Evaluation of how I did

I felt like I produced some okay work on this unit both 2D and 3D wise, the 2D drawings had mixed feelings from me as some were looking very good while other looked very weak and effortless. As for the 3D due to time constraints and being less accustomed to the materials I feel like I used them all appropriately and created a great final piece for what I did.

Evaluation of the unit

If we would have had more time I feel like this would have been a very good unit to experiment in, just as with the unit 38, even though I wasn't use to using the materials as I started to put them into use I could see my skills being picked up and improved the more I used them. I also found it to be a very nice practical unit, while very frustrating in parts (such as using the wire) I didn't dislike the unit entirely and would have enjoyed working more on it to improve my skills for the future. This was another unit that challenged my creative flair, especially when it came to coming up with combined insect ideas on task 2, and was very free on how I was allowed to tackle my project.

Overall I am happy with how I tackled the project but wished I had more time to hone in on my skills and improve my work by a lot, I would have loved to balance out the sculpture in areas and even to have painted it to give it more of a sculptural flair but for what I produced I can't say I'm disappointed in it or myself.